Umami synergy—combining glutamates and nucleotides—can amplify a meal

How science came to understand umami

Before Dr. Kikunae Ikeda sat down in 1907 and pondered the taste of dashi, scientists typically agreed upon four types of taste: sweet, salty, bitter, and sour. He boiled 90 pounds of kelp into a resin that he then stripped of different compounds until he was left with a single ounce of brown crystals. Testing later revealed these crystals were glutamate, an amino acid and one of the protein's building blocks.

Monosodium glutamate is a sodium salt form of a naturally occurring amino acid

Monosodium glutamate myths originate from a 1968 letter to the New England Journal of Medicine, in which unpleasant symptoms after eating Chinese food were dubbed Chinese restaurant syndrome without medical data. Subsequent studies show this savory flavor enhancer—found in tomatoes, mushrooms, and other foods—is safe in moderation.

Understanding the biochemistry of ingredients and taste can improve flavor and texture

Keeping eggs at room temperature produces smoother batters when baking, and doing the same with tomatoes helps prevent a mealy, granular mouthfeel. Salting meat a day before gives more time for proteins to break down, improving flavor and tenderness, while cooking vegetables in well-salted water can lock in nutrients and color.

These cells 'taste' danger, trigger immune responses

Taste receptor-coated tuft cells are found throughout the body, where they communicate with and take part in a growing list of biological processes. In the intestines, these taste receptor-studded cells can sense byproducts of parasite metabolisms. This causes the taste receptors to release chemicals that alert the immune system, order nearby goblet cells to produce mucus, and trigger muscle contractions in attempts to launch the parasites from the intestines.

GLP-1 drugs mimic a natural hormone that triggers appetite-suppressing effects

Ozempic, one of the brand names for the drug semaglutide, was originally developed in 2012, to help treat Type 2 diabetes. Among other effects, the drug mimics a naturally produced hormone known as GLP-1, which is released while eating to let our bodies know we are full.

Barbecue relies on a unique scientific equation

Barbecue's distinct flavor starts with an interaction between the heat source and food, which creates a Maillard Reaction—better known to diners as those crunchy, caramelized bits on the outside.

Explore a list of 12 recipes incorporating techniques from molecular gastronomy

The recipes include popcorn shooters that taste like liquid caramel corn, almost-instant soft serve made by blending frozen fruit with sugar and fromage blanc, a fusion of fried rice and pizza, and skewered fruit coated in a broiled, glossy meringue.

Globalization is increasing the demand for cheese

The increased popularity of Western cuisine has affected the cheese market in historically cheese-averse regions like East Asia. Japan has gotten particularly excited about exploring what cheese has to offer, with festivals and creative fusion dishes featuring the versatile ingredient.

Bacteria use chemical signals to communicate and coordinate with one another

Through a system called quorum sensing, bacteria produce and absorb compounds from their environment to identify allies or competitors and adjust their behavior accordingly. Some bacteria produce food-digesting enzymes only in the presence of similar bacteria, thereby preventing competitors from consuming their meal.

Peptides may have predated ribosomes—the cell's protein factory

Some scientists have hypothesized that peptides and RNA molecules may have coevolved as a single, mixed "chimeric" molecule, fueling the beginning of protein production and predating a primitive version of the ribosome. All life today uses ribosomes to make peptides. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

Goose bumps may play a role in hair growth

Research in mice suggests that the same muscles that contract to create goose bumps act as the bridge for the sympathetic nervous system’s connection to hair follicle stem cells. This raises questions about how this knowledge could be used to reactivate the sympathetic nerves in hair follicles to boost hair growth in people.

Muted smell and taste in microgravity complicate meal enjoyment

Astronauts primarily consume freeze-dried meals, which are rehydrated with water recycled from urine and perspiration, directly from bags. Condiments and select cultural items from crew members can enhance the meal experience by boosting flavor. Many individuals report experiencing "food fatigue" due to a lack of fresh produce, limited menu variety, and lingering scents.

Deep sea fish rely on a molecular strengthener to prevent being crushed

Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) stabilizes hydrogen bonds and prevents water and proteins within organisms from being misshapen under immense pressure. Compounds called piezolytes protect cellular membranes from being crushed in regions like the Mariana Trench, where pressures are 1,100 times greater than surface atmospheric pressure.

When common sounds become disturbing

Misophonia causes certain sounds to feel violating, triggering a "very visceral kind of experience" filled with extremely unpleasant emotions, including annoyance, anger, and disgust. A 2017 study found that people with misophonia have elevated activity in the brain's anterior insula—a region associated with interoception, emotional processing, and behavioral responses—when exposed to trigger sounds. Ongoing research suggests trigger sound context affects the severity and manifestation of the condition.

Nitrogenous bases connect like puzzle pieces due to their shape

There are four bases—adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine—which keep the two strands of DNA connected via chemical bonds between them. Connections between thymine and adenine require two hydrogen bonds, while those between cytosine and guanine need three hydrogen bonds. These differences in bond number prevent non-complementary pairings.

Finding delight through your five senses

Digging into your immediate senses is shown to benefit your overall psychological well-being, from the happy memories evoked by familiar scents or through the transformative power of birdsong. This episode from the Science of Happiness podcast highlights insights from Gretchen Rubin, an author who has written books on the importance of engaging your senses for a happy life.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

Why grocery stores play music while you shop

Grocery stores don't play music just for the good vibes. Store soundtracks have been proven to increase spending and improve customer experiences, especially if the music is upbeat. If the tunes are nostalgic for the stores' key demographics, it can help develop a store’s desired brand identity. This article from Reader's Digest details the many reasons behind this strategy.

Gummy vitamins have candy-level sugar—and that sweetness is linked to overdoses

A typical gummy vitamin contains about the same amount of sugar in a single serving as one Sour Patch candy. It's linked to the increase in pediatric overdoses for products including multivitamins and melatonin. Gummy formulations also degrade quickly, so they often include much higher levels of the product in each serving than the label advertises—boosting overdose risks due to this unchecked variability. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

While atoms are normally made of protons, neutrons, and electrons, exotic ones have been built with antimatter—alternate versions of normal matter that live for fractions of a second and are about a billion times as rare.

Food poisoning investigations have led to more than 1 billion pounds of food recalls

PulseNet is the US government’s real-time foodborne illness tracking system for leading causes of food poisoning. There, a network of labs and scientists share DNA sequences for pathogens collected from contaminated food and also from sickened individuals, looking for patterns in the pathogens’ genome sequences that will help them hopefully finger a certain food, warehouse, producer, or restaurant.

Honeybees vomit nectar into one another's mouths to transform it into honey

Digestive enzymes break down long chains of complex sugars into simple monosaccharides, while the fanning of their wings helps honeybees evaporate water away. This process increases the acidity of the resulting honey, increasing its shelf life when sealed in beeswax.

Pharmaceutical companies can use ChatGPT to improve drug development

Moderna has incorporated the tool into its workflows to accelerate analysis and identify optimal drug dosage from clinical data. The company's legal team also uses a custom GPT—Contract Companion—to break down and summarize contracts quickly.

Neurons send signals through electrical impulses and chemical messengers

By converting electrical signals into chemical messages at synapses, neurons allow information to travel throughout the nervous system. With repeated use, synapses grow stronger, enhancing the associations between neurons.

Learn how environmental conditions are optimized to increase bioremediation efficacy

Through biostimulation, Indigenous microbes are provided with moisture, nutrients, or oxygen to prevent their death and ensure optimal progression of their biochemical reactions. Bioaugmentation can introduce new microbial cultures to target specific compounds not natively found in the environment, while landfarming can spread or aerate contaminated soil to improve access to contaminants.

American Express has acquired restaurant software companies to elevate its cardholder experience

One of the many perks of American Express cards is dining credits and special reservation access to fine dining restaurants. Since American Express cardholders are often more affluent than other credit card users, restaurants have benefited from increased partnerships with American Express to offer cardholders preferential reservations and premium experiences. In 2019, American Express acquired Resy, a reservation software, and went on to acquire Tock in 2024.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Hookworm infection, though risky, may help fight certain autoimmune conditions by tamping down the immune system's inflammatory response.

Poison ivy is in the same family as mangoes, cashews, and pistachios—and they all produce oily urushiol in their raw, unprocessed state—but they are typically prepared in ways to avoid causing human discomfort.

The use of fungi to detoxify land and water—a process known as mycoremediation—has been used to clean up natural resources affected by the 2025 California wildfires.

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

A pickleball's loud 'pop' sound can reach 120 decibels, which is equivalent to a hammer hitting a nail

When caught in the mouths of cardinal fish, seed shrimp release glowing, bioluminescent chemicals, which alert predators of the cardinal fish, prompting the shrimp's ejection.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

Studies suggest when you sleep is as important as how much you get, and syncing with your circadian rhythms may lead to less fatigue and improved long-term health outcomes

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

A small portion of The Winstons' 'Amen, Brother,' an obscure '60s gospel record, is the basis for thousands of hip-hop tracks, making it one of the most sampled records ever that's informally known as 'the Amen break.'

Graffiti dates back to at least ancient Pompeii, where citizens scrawled messages to one another on public walls

Hotels in Cannes, the glamorous city on the French Riviera, hire hawks to ward off seagulls during the city's famous film festival.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.